Learn Hardcore Turkish: Oturma odası yeni kilimle döşeniyor. - The living room is being furnished with a new rug.

döşeniyor is the passive present-continuous form of the verb döşemek (to furnish/upholster). You form it by taking the stem döşe-, adding the passive suffix -n-, and then the progressive tense suffix -iyor. Literally it says “is being furnished.”

Why is a passive construction used here instead of an active one?

Turkish uses the passive when the focus is on the action or its result (the room getting furnished), rather than on who does it. Since the sentence doesn’t specify who is doing the furnishing, we use döşeniyor (“is being furnished”) instead of an active form like “we furnish.”

How would I form other tenses in the passive for döşemek?

Start with the passive stem döşen-, then add the tense/aspect endings:
• Past progressive: döşeniyordu (“was being furnished”)
• Simple past: döşenildi or döşendi (“was furnished”)
• Future: döşenecek (“will be furnished”)
• Conditional: döşense (“if it were/were being furnished”), etc.

What role does -le play in kilimle?

The suffix -le is the instrumental case marker meaning “with” or “by means of.” So kilimle literally means “with (a) rug.” It tells us the tool or instrument used for furnishing.

Why isn’t there an article like bir before kilim?

Turkish doesn’t have an indefinite article equivalent to English “a/an.” If you want to emphasize “a new rug,” you can add bir: yeni bir kilimle döşeniyor. Without bir, yeni kilimle still conveys “with a new rug.”

What exactly does oturma odası mean, and why no extra endings?

oturma odası is a compound noun meaning “living room” (literally “the sitting room”). oturma (from oturmak, “to sit”) plus oda (“room”). In noun–noun compounds, Turkish generally drops possessive/genitive endings between the parts. It’s singular by default; the plural would be oturma odaları.

How could I specify who is furnishing the room?

In a passive sentence you add an agent with tarafından (“by”):
Oturma odası yeni kilimle tarafımdan döşeniyor.
(“The living room is being furnished with a new rug by me.”)
However, speakers often prefer the active:
Ben oturma odasını yeni kilimle döşüyorum.
(“I’m furnishing the living room with a new rug.”)

Why is the verb positioned at the end of the sentence?

Turkish follows a Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) word order. Here:
• Subject: Oturma odası
• Instrument/object phrase: yeni kilimle
• Verb: döşeniyor
All verbs in Turkish normally come last.